In the short video clip, one can’t hear the two men talking, so it’s unclear what exactly was said. Obama soon ducked his head out, waved to the pilot, and jaunted back down the stairs to address the marine, shaking his hand. Naval Academy graduation ceremony on Annapolis, Md., President Obama didn’t return the salute of the marine standing guard at the door of Marine One, as he climbed the steps to the helicopter cabin. The president may have forgotten something as he boarded Marine One this morning.
Many news outlets, such as ABC News and CNN, accompanied this video with articles speculating that President Obama had “forgotten” to salute the Marine and had disembarked the helicopter in order to address him:
Marine One is typically accompanied or met on the ground by at least one Marine in full dress uniform, and the clip embedded above shows President Obama climbing the steps up to the helicopter while seemingly paying no mind to the nearby Marine guard (who saluted his approach), conversing briefly with the flight crew, then exiting the aircraft and jogging down the steps to re-approach and acknowledge the Marine before reboarding Marine One:
